Summary

• Kay Vess navigates criminal syndicates in Star Wars Outlaws to build her reputation and secure freedom.
• Reputation mechanics in the game affect Kay's relationship with factions, with a warning to "beware of who you cross."
• The Death Trooper in the trailer hints at a potential personal connection to Kay Vess, teasing a deeper story.

Ubisoft just showed more footage from Star Wars Outlaws, showing some of the situations Kay Vess will be navigating as she deals with various criminal syndicates in a bid to build her reputation and secure her freedom. It's long been established that the open-world title will take place between the events of The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, with Kay interacting with characters such as Jabba the Hutt as part of her dealings with the criminal underworld, and Lando Calrissian, who was seen briefly in a trailer at Summer Game Fest 2024.

The latest trailer shown at the good or bad relationship with different factions through her actions by ominously stating, "Beware of who you cross." Accompanying this narration was an image of an Imperial trooper in shinier metallic armor - rather than their usual white one - watching Kay from afar.

No, That Wasn't Captain Phasma In Star Wars Outlaws

Phasma Created Her Armor Decades After Star Wars Outlaws Takes Place

In Star Wars canon, there was only one main Stormtrooper character who had proper chrome armor, and that was Captain Phasma of the First Order. Phasma created her armor in 25 ABY, decades after The Empire Strikes Back, which took place in the year 3 ABY on the Star Wars timeline, as revealed in the canon novel Star Wars: Phasma by Delilah S. Dawson. Phasma's armor is one of a kind, as she created it by polishing it with chromium that had been salvaged from an old Imperial yacht on Naboo, using the material to protect her from blaster fire and radiation and as a symbol of past power while combining it with a First Order armorweave cape to represent the newer First Order.

While Star Wars Outlaws is visiting some locations from the sequel trilogy, such as The Rise of Skywalker's Kijimi, and its new Ashiga Clan is part of the

Militto species that first appeared in The Force Awakens with the introduction of the character Sarco Plank, everything in the newer canon materials so far suggests that the metallic-looking stormtrooper in Star Wars Outlaws could not be Phasma, from the timeline placement to the fact that if she was active in 3 ABY, the character would be much older than she was in the sequel trilogy.

The Death Trooper Has Been Shown In Other Star Wars Trailers

Could One Have A Personal Connection To Kay Vess?

The type of trooper in question is a Death Trooper, potentially the same one seen in the previous Star Wars Outlaws story trailer. The shape of their armor aligns, with one particular shoulder piece sticking out at an angle. Whereas the previous shots of the Death Trooper took place at night and made the armor look a deeper shade of glossy black, the new footage took place in daylight, which made the armor appear slightly more gray and metallic by comparison in this one particular shot. Other gameplay sequences show Kay using a stealth takedown on a Death Trooper in daylight where their armor appears far darker - matching their appearance in some daytime sequences in Rogue One - with the Death Trooper referred to specifically in Ubisoft's breakdown.

The real question this poses, however, is just what significance this particular Death Trooper seems to have to Kay Vess. While it could be written off as a representation of the Empire's more elite troops hunting Kay - potentially tying into the game's Grand Theft Auto-esque Wanted system, where different types of Imperial units will begin to chase Kay as her Wanted level increases - the narration in the new Ubisoft Forward footage hints that there may be more of a story involving Kay and this specific trooper, potentially involving some kind of betrayal.

In an interview with Screen Rant at Summer Game Fest, Star Wars Outlaws' creative director, Julian Gerighty, stated that Kay Vess is "not perfect," as she is "just a rookie thief that finds themselves catapulted into this incredible adventure." While this was referring to deg a relatable character for the game, it also suggests that Kay could have made several mistakes and crossed people - other than the game's primary antagonist, Sliro - long before the events of Star Wars Outlaws unfold.

Fortunately, players won't have to wait too much longer to find out exactly how this all ties into Kay's story, as Star Wars Outlaws launches on August 31 on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC via Ubisoft Connect and Epic Games Store. Pre-orders for the title are available now.

Source: Ubisoft/YouTube (1, 2)